Bloode, the first online blood donation community in Greece, was launched in 2014 by Natalia Krichsali, Alexander Sotiropoulos and Panagiotis Sfikas, then fellows at the Athens University of Economics and Business. So far, they have had 3 years of success, especially in 2017. 

 

In 2017, Bloode managed to collect 4,500 volunteer blood donors, fulfill 191 requests for blood, and organize 55 blood donations. And their most important success; they donated more than 1,025 liters of blood for people in need.

Bloode grew to two main groups of 26 new volunteers who are now on staff. In order to meet the efficiency and growing needs to reach their goal, they decided to strengthen its management team by creating a new Board of Directors with President Natalia Krizali, a founding member of the organization, and members of the Business Development Director (ReGerenation), Giorgos Nikolettakis (CEO, 100 Mentors) and Angeliki Papadopoulou (Corporate Affairs Officer, Nestlé Hellas). Alexandros Sotiropoulos, also founding member of the Organization, has also now assumed the duties of General Manager and Secretary General of the BoD.

And finally, they developed partnerships with 10 new companies and 3 organizations to begin blood donation programs, which have also boosted their volunteer activity.

Any company that wants to set up a blood donation program and a blood bank for its employees and to those in need, can contact Bloode to help both organize events and inform those who would like to participate. The same applies to any other organization or group that would like to help their community.

Behind Bloode's effort is the community of blood donors, the volunteers of their team and their sponsors. Bloode is especially grateful for the cooperation with the Bodossakis Foundation and the Onassis Foundation, who helped in their effort to donate more blood.

With a new structure, mood and vision Bloode hopes to save even more lives in 2018!

For more information, please visit: Bloode

Sara Toscano met her Greek husband in the Netherlands in 2013 during the Erasmus Program and after living abroad for a few years, she and her husband finally decided to settle in Athens in 2015. This is her story!

In 2015, our daughter was born and I decided to create together with the group Anumati, “Θα βγω Απ'το Αυγό” (Out of the Egg), a theatre performance for babies from 4 to 18 months, which is playing for the 3rd consecutive year in the Avaton Theatre in Athens. As a dancer I love performing arts and I believe that babies love it too if we give them the chance to see it.

One year during our summer holidays in Portugal, my husband, who is also a performer, and I took our daughter to see a concert for babies. The experience was so pleasant that we decided to bring the concept to Greece and develop it further. This is how “Musical Seasons” began.

As soon as we arrived in Athens we spoke with Dionysis Giampanas, the composer of the project, and we decided to combine classical music with percussion and dance. I had worked extensively with young children before and I was thrilled to have both babies and their families as an audience. These initiatives suited my new life, being a dancer and a mum, and also made it possible for me to work despite the language barriers, since my Greek is still at an intermediate level. Through these performances, I also come in contact with many young parents and these interactions make me realise how Greeks are so similar to the Portuguese, which makes me feel closer to home.

 

Click here for ticket information.

 

Greece has been a part of my life for many years. Although I have only settled in the country in 2016, I've been coming to Greece very often since 2005.

I am originally from Portugal. I grew up in Lisbon, which is my home town.

In 2003 I did the Erasmus exchange program in the Netherlands, where I met my Greek husband. We lived for a few years in Amsterdam and in Portugal until we finally decided to settle in Greece.

There are many things I love about living in Greece, like the weather and the delicious Mediterranean food, but most of all I like the Greek people, who I find both hospitable and generous. I like the fact that Greeks are expressive, proud and slightly philosophical in their every day life. I also love the fact that they always have a wish for every circumstance like “happy week”, “happy month” or even “enjoy it with health,” which they say to someone who bought a new pair of shoes or has a new haircut.

Yes, I live in the city-centre of Athens.

The Greek language was – and still is – a big challenge to me. Greeks have a rich vocabulary and their grammar is complex. They can have several words to say one simple thing or have one simple word that carries many meanings. When I first moved to Greece the expression “it's all Greek to me” was a constant reality!

Generally speaking, Greeks are extremely lively people. They sing and dance, laugh-out-loud, complain about their dislikes and are expressive with their words and gestures. In Portugal, we tend to be more quiet and sober so I was delighted and inspired by the energy and expressiveness of the Greeks. As a dancer I was specially surprised to see how much Greeks from all generations still dance and keep their music traditions alive.

I believe that the biggest challenge when you move abroad and live in a different country is to be willing to get to know the culture of your host country, beyond the clichés. For me it was extremely helpful and interesting to read about ancient and modern Greek history because it helped me understand the Greeks better, to empathize with their social codes and respect them more. It helped me integrate!

Remember to stay connected with us through our weekly newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter!

From sightseeing with the kids, to healthy food and plenty of exercise, Greece Is gives us tips for visiting Athens with the family!

Athens can be hot and busy, the traffic is loud and the many sites often involve climbing steps and hills. It may not seem like a place a child would necessarily enjoy. But if you plan it right, a trip to Athens can be an enjoyable experience for the whole family, full of memories that will last a lifetime.

A number of companies arrange tours specially designed for kids; museums teach them about the birth of science and democracy in ancient Greece; and amusement parks and playgrounds are on hand to provide fun breaks in the sightseeing program.

The tour company Kids Love Greece takes advantage of those myths and legends on their tours of the main sites and through central Athens. Their 3-hour tour of the Acropolis and the Acropolis museum is led by specially trained guides who practice interactive storytelling.

Treasure hunting is one of the specialties of tour company Be A Greek. Their treasure hunts for kids are led by a qualified children’s experts who will teach them all about the gods of Mount Olympus, as well as life in ancient Greece (when groups of two or more kids take part, they are split into competing teams, all supervised by a member of the Be a Greek team).

To read this article in full and for many more suggestions on what to do with the kids in Athens, please visit: Greece Is

The Greek Municipality recently released a video titled 'The True Athens Escape' in order to promote the area of Saronikos, one of the most historic municipalities of Attica.

This video is the first of its kind to showcase the tourism potential of the island to international audiences. In the video, it highlights tradition, simplicity, and the unique natural beauty of the region.

Either for a day trip or for a longer getaway from Athens, traveling alone, with family or friends, the ever-welcoming land of Saronikos offers a beautiful natural landscape, as well as history and traditions to experience.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

EasyJet has recently announced new flight additions, including Greek destinations, to their summer schedule. The airline will connect Chania, Crete with Lyon and Nice in France, as well as connecting Corfu with Venice, Italy.

 

Flights between Chania and Lyon will be twice a week, beginning June 25, and flights between Chania and Nice will be every Tuesday beginning June 26. Easyjet will also conduct a weekly flight between Corfu and Venice every Sunday, starting on July 1.

By adding the new itineraries to its summer schedule, easyJet is expected to operate more than 5,700 flights in July and August with more than one million seats on sale, a four percent rise compared to the same period in 2017.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

Tesla, the US company run by Elon Musk, that specializes in electric cars, energy storage, and solar panel manufacturing, have recently established Tesla Greece. Tesla will initially be operating from the National Center for Scientific Research "Demokritos," which is the biggest multidisciplinary research center in Greece. In the next few months, they are looking to recruit about 50 dedicated Research & Development staff.

Greece’s Research and Innovation Deputy Minister Costas Fotakis was instrumental in convincing the firm to open up a Greek branch.

The Athens operation will be Tesla’s fourth R&D hub in Europe. The company already has two hubs in the Netherlands and one in Germany.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

Remember to stay connected with us through our weekly newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter!

After discovering the food at Moria, the refugee camp in Greece, was not up to standards, Ghafoor Hussain travelled 2,000 miles from Teesside to provide quality meals to those in need. He converted a coach bus into a mobile kitchen and now stations himself at the camp where he volunteers his time preparing and cooking meals. In this must-see video below, BBC travels with Ghafoor and interviews refugees at the camp to showcase Ghafoor's efforts in providing quality food.

Source: BBC News

As the construction for the subway in Thessaloniki, Greece continues, as it has been for the last 10 years, a recent discovery has caught the attention of news outlets, including Greek City Times. A headless Aphroditi, as well as beautiful floor mosaics, were found and excavated near Thessaloniki's Hagia Sophia, an ancient church dating back to the Byzantine era.

The discovery was announced on social media by the chairman of Attiko Metro, Yannis Mylopoulos, who posted the picture of the statue. According to Mylopoulos 300,000 antiquities have been unearthed during archaeological excavations so far at the metro site.

Apart from the floors, the wall ruins and part of a bath that was in the complex, have been saved. From the excavations that are still in progress, it turns out there was also a tank that supplied the bath with water. Glass fragments at the site likely belong to bottles with aromatic oils applied by the bathers.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek City Times